Lullaby
by illutia mist
Summary: There are a few times he goes through his night with nightmare haunting him. What he wants all along is something to keep the nightmare away from him. And tonight, he will get what he wants, only to realize it has been by his side for a long time.


**Okay. Another sequel of A Miracle Night. This time, it's about Natsume. I hope you enjoy it.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice and its characters. I do own this story's long plot, the fluffiness, and five short paragraphs of kissing scene.**

He always felt cold, whether it's night or day. His heart was.

Under people's cold gazes and accusations, he searched for warm and yearned for it. A warm that could erase all the pain he had. A warm that could chase away the cold he felt; the cold that engulfed him ever since he was separated from his family.

The new circumstance he had been brought to gave him no mercy after all that had happened. They urged him to fight, physically and mentally. He was taught to kill under their command. He was used for their purpose. They weren't hesitant to use his friends to threaten him.

In his new surrounding, he changed.

The reason was simple. To survive.

"Natsume Hyuuga."

The nine year old raven-haired boy turned his head to the direction where the sly voice came from. His crimson eyes narrowed in milliseconds when he came face to face with the person who had caused the big turn in his life, from good to worse.

A few meters from the spot where he was standing, a man with black attire looked at him while leaning on the wall, his arms were crossing in front of his chest. A white mask covered a half of his face, from his eyes until above of his nose. His lips formed a devious smile.

The corridor was empty at that time. Students had been dismissed to go back to the dormitory and have their resting time until tomorrow came and another new day started again.

There was only one person who still stayed at school.

Natsume Hyuuga was still wandering around the corridor even though the sun had started to set in the west, even birds had gone back to their nest to rest. That's until the man in black called him, disturbing the peace he just got after another tiring day he should go through.

Natsume didn't reply. The only reply the older man got was his hatred gaze.

The red light which was the reflection of sunset's color shone through the window, creating a red path between the two. No sound was made by any of them for minutes, just the staring contest they had at that time.

Upon seeing the boy's expression, the man's smile widened. "Annoyed, I see…" His comeback earned a glare from the fire caster.

"Just get to the point," the raven-haired boy hissed.

The masked man chuckled; his hand which was in front of his face barely could cover the thin line of his curled lips at that time. "Tonight. Same time, same place," was his message before he disappeared from the fire caster's sight.

The corridor was quiet once again. Casting one last glance to the direction where the man disappeared seconds ago, the nine year old boy clicked his tongue and proceeded his way to the only place he could rest before he went to do the mission he got just now.

Tonight would be another hell for him.

-x-

His breath was heavy as he stepped into the dormitory. Bruises and scrapes were everywhere on his body. His black uniform was a bit torn. His black cat mask was covering his face, hiding his expression from his surrounding.

Natsume carefully climbed the stairs and walked to his room, hoping no one would find him now. He suppressed his moans of pain along the way while having his right hand holding his left forearm. Two long lines of red color were visible on the uncovered part of his left arm. The trails of blood made their ways to his closing palm.

Leaning his uninjured arm on the wall as support, he walked through the corridor to his room. His pant got heavier as minutes passed by. The sound of friction between his shoes and the hard floor was faintly heard through the empty hallway. In the silence of the night, the fire caster just hoped he would arrive at his room quickly. The pain he felt got worsened as time went by.

In front of him, a corner was waiting for him. He knew perfectly the familiar corner, which he always passed whenever he walked out from his room to go to the building called school. Once he turned at the corner, he would find his room at the end of the hallway.

When he finally saw his room in front of him, his sight turned blurry. He also could feel his pace started to slow down. His legs almost gave up supporting his weight. Leaning his back on the wall, he stopped walking and stared at the wooden door to his room. His breath was ragged.

With his remaining energy, he braved himself not to faint there and pushed his body to move. He shook his head to regain his conscious. Fixing his gaze back to the door to his room, he started to walk again.

His mission that night was tough. He was almost killed in last seconds when he was about to blow up the building where AAO had gathered. It's all because the AAO had smelled his presence at that place. When he was on the way escaping from the building, the enemies had surrounded him. Could you imagine how a nine year old kid must fight the adults who also have alice like them?

It quite amazed him how he managed to go back to the academy wholly. He did lose almost all of his energy and got a few wounds, but he's still alive. That was what mattered.

He stretched out his right hand reaching for the door knob when he was finally standing in front of his room. Turning the door knob with a soft 'click', he pushed the wooden material thing lightly and the sight of his large room came into his view. He stepped inside carefully and closed the door behind him with his right leg. After making sure the door was closed, he dragged his feet to the king-sized bed on the other side of the room.

He was tired, extremely tired.

The moment his knees touched the end of the soft material, he let his body fall forward and land on it. He closed his eyes for a while and rolled his body to lay his back on the bed. His left arm ached in the process, jerking him awake from his brief nap.

"Damn it," Natsume cursed under his breath. He looked at the wound on his left arm and found more blood trails on it. It also stained his bed sheet, leaving a few tiny drips of red color on it.

Reluctantly, the nine year old boy pushed himself up from the comfortable thing and went to the bedside table. He pulled the upper drawer and took a white medium-sized box out. Inside, there were a few things which were used for the first-aid treatment. He rolled his left sleeve up carefully and started to treat his wound, wincing every time his small move made contact with the injury.

After a few minutes tending his wound, he did the finishing touch on the bandage and closed the first-aid box. He was about to put it back to the drawer when he saw a small red box on the bedside table. Curiosity grew inside him. He didn't realize the small box before, since he was too occupied with his wound. He put the first-aid box inside the drawer and closed it.

Not averting his gaze from the small red box, he stretched his right hand out to the box and took it from the bedside table. A small note was visible when he lifted the box. Curious, he took the note with his other free hand and examined it.

_Happy birthday, Natsume. I hope your wish will come true._

_Ruka._

As he read the message, he had an invisible small smile on his face. The simple message managed to ease his tiredness for a bit. His only best friend still remembered the day he was born; even he himself had forgotten about it. It's tragic, but he never paid attention to the momentous day ever since he entered the academy.

He shifted his attention back to the box. The box was as big as his hand. One of his eyebrows bent down as he wondered what was inside the small box. He placed the box on his left palm and pulled the cover open using his right hand. His fingers moved swiftly in opening the thin material. His eyes widened upon seeing what was inside the box.

A cake. A small chocolate cake with a strawberry as the topping was standing altogether inside it.

He then tore all four sides of the box, carefully not to ruin the cake in the middle of it. Since it's made from carton, it's not that hard to tear it. When the cake was finally presentable to him, he took a small piece of it and placed it in his mouth, tasting it.

He never liked chocolate or sweet things. Never.

But the bitter taste of dark chocolate in his tongue was just so nice. He took the strawberry and bit it on the tip. The sweet and sour taste melted inside his mouth with the bitter chocolate, creating a unique taste on his tongue.

Not long after he savored his present, a familiar ache was felt in his chest. 'It comes again…' He shut his eyes in pain and clutched the front of his shirt. A few beads of sweat started to form on his face. Putting down the remained cake, he lay his body on his bed and curled up.

The stinging pain got worsened from time to time and the weather didn't give him any mercy. Sweats kept forming and rolling down on his face as the cold of the night brushed his exposed skin. Closing his eyes, he tried to sleep; though he knew what would welcome him was nightmare.

It's such a cold night.

It's such a cold birthday.

If Fate permitted, he wished for something that could drift him to sleep without any nightmare again. Something that could chase away the cold he felt. The warm he had longed for.

Something that could lull him to sleep.

He had never wished for anything but his best friend and his family's safety. He had never wished anything for himself.

That night was the first time he made his wish. His secret wish.

-x-

"Natsume…"

Along with the angelic voice, he felt a cold yet gentle touch on his face. He knew the voice and touch well, but his eyelids were too heavy to be lifted.

"Natsume…"

He smelled strawberry scent in the air. He felt the touch moving from his forehead to his cheek then to his chin. The second time he tried to open his eyes, he succeeded. The first thing that greeted him was the sight of the brunette smiling down at him.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly, her fingers didn't stop caressing his cheek. The raven-haired lad didn't answer. He let out a sigh of content at her touch. Moving his gaze away from her, he scanned his surrounding.

He saw a tree standing straight behind his girlfriend. The sky had also turned dark. His head was lying on the brunette's lap and the rest of his body was lying on the cold green grass. He brought his right arm to his face and rested it on his forehead while trying to remember how he could end up in this place.

As he closed his eyes, he saw a few faint images in reddish orange color. He heard a few voices call for help and people desperately ran out from a burning building.

Then realization hit him.

He was in his mission hours ago, another deadly mission which required him to use his alice. It was another mission which he must burn down the place where AAO was hiding. Of course, unexpected obstacles tried to fail his mission and drag him into danger. But fortunately, he managed to come back safely to the academy, though he remembered he didn't reach the dormitory and lost his consciousness when he rested under the tree instead.

Again, a few souls had been taken by his arms that night.

"You didn't tell me you had a mission tonight…" His girlfriend's whisper brought him back from his trance. "I have been waiting you for three hours in your room and you didn't show up. You even made me almost strangle Ruka to tell me where you were."

His lips twitched a little when he heard her last sentence, holding back the urge to smile and chuckle. He couldn't imagine the cheery and gentle brunette could do that to his best friend, only to know where he went. He owed an apology to the blonde boy later.

"Stop waiting for me, will you? You know where I go if I don't show up in my room," he said nonchalantly, closing his eyes enjoying night gentle breeze. He heard a sharp breath came from the brunette the moment he said that. Wondering what was wrong with her, he opened one eye. And soon, he regretted what he did just now. Or rather, what he said just now.

He saw hurt in her hazel eyes. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as she blinked back the tears which had threatened to spill out from her eyes. Natsume blamed himself for this. He wondered why he couldn't just tell her he wasn't worth to be waited.

Most of the time, he would go away on a mission without telling her; and of course, this would get her worried. To see her waiting for him to come back every night was enough to torture his mental. He wasn't worth the smile and comfort she offered after he made her wait for him for God-knows-how-long.

It's just so unfair for her.

"…You don't like it?" she asked, her voice barely could be heard.

He brought his eyes to her face, seeing a sad and hurt expression mixing into one. He never liked this expression of hers. Never.

It hurt him to see her like this. And to think that it's because of him, it made him feel worse.

"I…"

"I'm just worried…" she cut him off, "…I just want to make sure that you come back safely…That I'll see you again tomorrow…" She stared at him sadly, her fingers was playing with his raven hair.

Natsume sighed. "I will come back…" he mumbled. 'If I don't get killed by my own alice…' he added in his mind.

A small smile made its way through her lips, faintly. "…I know…"

The fire caster's attention was back on her once again. He knew she wasn't convinced enough with his answer. He knew she acknowledged about the connection between his alice and his lifespan. She just never said anything about it.

The deafening silence came later. No one of them talked after that. They enjoyed each other's presence for a while, until the brunette opened her mouth to speak. "Natsume…"

"Hm…?" The raven-haired lad had his eyes closed, enjoying the cool breeze on his skin and the comfortable feeling as his girlfriend caressed his hair and face.

"…Happy birthday…"

Silence fell upon them. Those two simple words were spoken in a low voice, but it's enough for him to hear.

He wondered how long it had been since the last time he heard that sentence. The simple sentence which reminded him that he was getting old, and turning to an adult he and Ruka had been dreaming of.

How long they had been dreaming of that? When would they be free from all miseries this academy gave them?

"…Your birthday cake……" she drawled, biting her lower lip. Her eyes were looking at elsewhere, everywhere but him. Natsume raised an eyebrow at her, urging her to continue; though he had an idea what the continuation of her sentence.

After minutes passed and she hadn't said anything, the fire caster got impatient. A lazy grin graced his lips as he said, "You ruined the kitchen again to make it. And unfortunately, the cake got ruined too?" The brunette frowned, but she nodded in approval. He chuckled as he remembered the almost same event ever happened once before. "You have no luck with cooking."

Scowling, she slapped his shoulder playfully and this made him wince. The brunette didn't miss the slight hurt expression. "Are you hurt?"

The raven-haired lad swallowed, attempting to erase the trace of hurt in his voice. "…No."

Unconvinced by his word, she narrowed her eyes and forcefully unbuttoned his shirt, which got a small resistance from him. She slapped his shoulder again and his wince was more visible this time because the hit wasn't gentle like before. This gave the brunette a chance to unbutton a few upper buttons of his shirt and took it off enough to reveal his injured shoulder.

It looked like a stab wound. The red color of the blood had soaked the shoulder part of his shirt. Thanks to his black shirt, she wasn't aware of this wound when she found him. Panicked, she reached for the white first-aid box beside her. "I brought this in case you're injured," she explained as she opened the box. "Take off your shirt if you want us to do this the easy way."

Grunting, he lifted his head from his girlfriend's lap and sat up. He unbuttoned the rest of the buttons before he reluctantly took his shirt off. "It's not that bad…" he mumbled. He heard the brunette scoff before he felt a sharp pain which was caused by a hard dab on his wounded shoulder. "Hey! Be gentle, will you?!"

"I'm trying," she said irritatingly as she kept on dabbing on his wound not too gently. "At least, I am."

Natsume rolled his eyes. It was clear to him that the brunette was mad. "What are you mad at?" She didn't answer. Instead, she gave her full attention to treating his wound. He shifted his gaze to her, knowing she just pretended not to hear anything. "You heard me."

A soft sigh escaped from her lips as she bandaged his wound. "…I'm mad at myself, I guess…" she answered in a low voice. "I couldn't do anything, except waiting for you and treating your wound…"

He grew quiet. 'No…You have done so much for me…' That was what he wanted to say. But then he would have to tell her what she had done for him after that, which he never bothered to mention because it was embarrassing and out of his character. Therefore, he chose to be quiet, just watching her finish bandaging him and set all things back in order inside the first-aid box.

The moment he saw her leaning her back on the tree trunk, he moved to sit beside her. Their shoulders were brushing each other gently and he felt comfortable in the situation. He closed his eyes for a moment and leaned his head on the hard surface. Both of them were sitting in silence under the starry night, side by side.

"…I shouldn't have spilled my anger over you…" He popped one eye open upon hearing this and glanced at the brunette beside him. Her hazel eyes were staring far away to the night sky. "…I'm sorry…"

A small smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "I want my birthday present then."

The brunette glanced at him. "…The cake is the present," she said. "…And it's already ruined." A frown appeared on her face.

The invisible smirk turned into a grin. "You have another present," he said playfully. "And I'll take it now."

With that, he leaned his face to hers, their lips were barely brushing. He inhaled deeply, taking her strawberry scent into his lungs. He didn't make any move again to close the gap between them, inhaling her sweet scene for seconds. His fingers trailed gently from the back of her hand to her arm then her nape before it finally rested on the back of her head. Eyes closed, both of them enjoyed the closeness for a while.

A gentle push from his hand was enough to bring her face to his, closing the distance between them. He tilted his head slightly and pressed his lips to her soft one. For a moment, their kiss was just an innocent one, lips met lips. Then slowly, their lips were moving against each other.

His other hand found its way to her tiny waist and wrapped around it, pulling her closer to him without breaking the lips contact. He nibbled at her lower lip gently, causing the brunette to gasp and part her lips, giving him chance to insert his tongue and explore the small sweet cave of her mouth. His hand rubbed her back ever so gently, sending shivers down her spine.

But she didn't pull away. Instead, she placed her hands on his chest and trailed it slowly to his shoulder, neck, and they're lost in his raven hair. He smirked between the kiss at her eager action and continued to kiss her again.

The kiss was fervent, yet gentle. Soft moans and groans were elicited from them, and they had no intention to end the kiss soon.

Air was the only reason why they must break apart.

When the distance came between them, the brunette was still in daze. Her face flushed. Her eyes were half-closed as she tried to catch her breath. Being the first one who was able to recover from the breathless, Natsume grinned. "Thanks for the amazing gift," he muttered as he traced her bruised lips with his thumb.

She couldn't retort his sentence for she was still busy gathering the air back into her lungs, so she leaned her head against the crook of his neck instead. The fire caster held her securely in his arms, resting his cheek on her head and closing his eyes enjoying the moment.

Their soft breathing and heartbeats merged into one, inaudible for the other except them.

He felt so relaxed after the long miserable mission. He missed the serene moment. No need to rush, just enjoyed it. How he wanted this kind of moment to last longer…and maybe forever…

His eyes widened slightly as a familiar ache suddenly appeared in his chest. He clenched his teeth, trying to suppress the stinging pain he felt. 'Not now…' he thought as he shut his eyes. 'Not when she's here…'

The nullifier sensed his hold on her getting tightened. "…Natsume…?" she hesitantly asked when she heard him grind his teeth. Consuming by curiosity, she finally looked up; eyes widened when she saw him in pain. "Natsume?!"

The raven-haired lad finally surrendered and let the pain take over him. He let his head fall onto her shoulder, but he never loosened his hold. The brunette got panicked. She did what she could do, calling his name and rubbing his back tenderly, everything that could make him comfortable.

And the fire caster did what he wanted to do all this time, calling her name.

"…Mi…kan…"

She froze for a while when she heard her name being called. Was it just her imagination?

"…Mikan…"

No, it's not.

She quickly snapped out of her thought and paid her attention to the pained man in her arms. "I'm here…" she immediately answered when she heard him call his name for the umpteenth time. Her hands kept caressing his back in rhythm, trying to ease his pain away. "I won't go anywhere…" she whispered and she started to hum a nameless song.

Natsume heard the soft tune. His breath was still ragged, but he managed to form a small smile on his face. How glad he was to know she was there for him, waiting and comforting him; though he felt bad making her stay up when she could have her nice sleep that night. Maybe to have someone wait for you wasn't bad either.

"…You know…" he whispered as the brunette kept on humming. "…You've done so much…for me…"

Mikan was quite surprised hearing the fire caster's whisper. She blinked back the happy tears she had in her eyes and smiled. "…Thank you…You don't know how much it means to me…" she whispered back, burying her face in between his neck and shoulder. To know she was useful to him was a relief. At least, he didn't think of her as a burden.

He just smiled secretly. The pain in his chest started to subdue as she hummed softly. Her voice sent both warm and comfort into his body, making him feel contented.

He remembered he ever wished for something that could cease his nightmare every night years ago. He remembered how much he longed for warm that could ease the cold he felt away.

Maybe Fate gave its permission.

Maybe God heard his wish.

All things he wanted and longed for came in the form of the brunette.

After all this time, how could he not recognize it?

Her soft touch…

Her even breathing…

The warm she offered…

The way she called his name…

It was like a lullaby for him.

The special lullaby which only could be heard by him.

Minutes passed and she still didn't stop humming. She whispered his name now and then, telling him he would be fine. As his consciousness started to get thin, he closed his eyes slowly.

He wouldn't have to be awake because of his nightmare again.

Tonight, and maybe the other nights, he was sure he could sleep peacefully.

Even though the night was cold and the pain was bugging him, he didn't have to be afraid.

The night would be warm…The pain would be gone…

…And nightmare wouldn't come…

…Because she would sing the lullaby for him…

**And that's it.**

**I hope I didn't do it bad. I needed hours to make, scratch that, type the kissing scene. Should I blame my poor imagination for that?**

**And happy birthday, Natsume! And whoever that has the same birth day with him. May you live long and have a wonderful life. Comments will be appreciated :)**


End file.
